Harry Potter and the Penseive Journeys
by PotterLover4
Summary: This is a continuation of the HBP. It follows Harry and Ginny's confused relationship. Harry continues his search for the horcruxes and discovers that the best way to find what you want is to retrace your steps, specifically revisiting his past through t
1. Goodbye Dursleys, Forever

**This is my first story and reviews would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for reading! **

**Disclaimer: I do not, though regrettably, own Harry Potter.**

**Chapter 1 - Goodbye Dursleys, Forever**

The boy-who-lived awoke with a start. Sweat dripping down his face, he wiped his brow and noticed his glasses were askew. He pushed them up and subconsciously looked into the mirror hanging ahead of his small bed in his tiny room. Harry Potter reached up and touched his lightning bolt scar, which was a shade lighter than usual, giving it an eerie glow in contrast with his jet black hair.

He took his glasses off to get a better view of his throbbing scar. He was taken aback by the uncanny resemblance he was beginning to share with his father, but his only brought sad thoughts to his mind. His father...his mother...Sirius...and now Dumbledore. All murdered either directly or indirectly through Lord Voldemort and his evil ways. Yes, Voldemort was the reason he no longer had parents to share his life with, or a godfather to confide in, or a mentor to learn from.

Had it really only been a month since that horrible night on the tower? The night when Snape's true colors had finally been shown. Snape...how Harry loathed him. Not only did he hate Snape for tormenting Sirius and killing Dumbledore, he hated the fact that Harry _new_ he was evil, and he couldn't find the strength to convince anyone of this.

Harry also had been harboring guilt over another incident at the end of last year, involving a beautiful girl with red flaming hair. God, how could he have been so stupid, how could he have let her go? He couldn't help but envision the sallow face of Voldemort, and Harry knew that this too was Voldemort's fault, just as everything that went wrong in Harry's life was. Harry had broken up with her to protect her from Voldemort's wrath. In truth, he was still deeply in love with her.

Harry was startled out of his train of thought by two loud 'pop's outside his door. The 'pop's were followed by the sounds of a heated argument between a boy and a girl. A grin came to Harry's lips.

"I told you this wasn't right! I knew we should have written to Harry first to tell him we were coming, he could have met us somewhere!

"Oh yeah, little miss know-it-all, has to do everything her way or no way...Wasn't it you who said we should come at night? And look where it landed us, in the pitch-black darkness and lost!"

"Yeah well I think–"

"Eh-hem. Are you two going to argue out here all night or you gonna come in here and talk to me?"

"Oh Harry!" Hermione cried and flung her arms around his neck, nearly crushing a few ribs in the process.

"Hey mate! We thought we got the wrong place for a minute there," said Harry's best friend Ron sheepishly. "How ya been?" He added.

"Ugh..fi...ugh...fine...ugh," choked Harry, trying to get a breathe past his currently crushed windpipe, due to Hermione's tight embrace.

Ron stepped in and grabbed Hermione's shoulders, saying "Alright alright, let the man breathe." Hermione stepped back with a blush on her face, due to her embarrassment in crushing Harry or the way Ron gently touched her, Harry was unsure. He grinned mentally.

"Ah, thanks Ron," said Harry rubbing his neck. "Now we'd better get inside my room before the Dursely's wake up and kill me." With that, Harry led Hermione and Ron into the room and closed the door, eager to talk with his two best friends.

"Oh Harry, you look starved. Are they treating you good here?" Hermione inquired with worry. Harry noticed how she immediately sat next to Ron on his bed. Ron blushed slightly.

Harry replied, "No better or worse than any other summer. Although, my uncle seems a little happier lately. I think it's the prospect of me leaving forever that's giving him the extra cheer. So, when are we leaving anyway?" He asked them both.

"Mum says we were to bring you home straight away so she can properly nourish you. Plus she thinks it'll do you good to be around family instead of rotting here in this dump by yourself." Harry noted how Ron used the word 'family' and he couldn't help but be happy. He loved that the Weasley's had practically adopted him as their son. They were his family now, and he missed them terribly; one specific red-head in particular. Hermione seemed to pick up on what he was thinking about.

"She misses you, you know," Hermione said quietly.

"I know, I miss her too," Harry said without thinking. He immediately looked up, shocked that that had come out of his own mouth. He blushed. "I mean, who? Who misses me?" Harry tried to cover his slip up, but to no avail.

"Oh come off it mate, we know you still care for her, and it was probably some of those famous, and sometimes stupid heroic thoughts of yours that caused you to end it. Am I right?" Ron asked with a smirk.

"Whatever...I don't want to talk about it," Harry looked down at this shoes. Wanting to get back to the topic of most relevance, he asked them again, "Ok, so when are we leaving then? I don't really fancy hanging out here anymore, or ever again, for that matter." He gave them a pleading look.

Hermione answered, "Well since you didn't pass your apparition test yet, you can do side-along apparition with me. Ron just passed his test last week and will follow us. Let's get all your things together so we can leave as soon as possible." Grateful for the quickness in Hermione's plans, he got up immediately and started throwing things into his trunk from every corner of his room. Hermione sighed at him and made an attempt to point her wand at everything before they fell into his trunk and fold them neatly. When he was all packed, he stepped next to Hermione and looked expectantly at her.

Hermione just stared right back at him. "Well?"

"Well what?" Harry asked, confused.

"Well, aren't you going to say good-bye to your relatives? You're never going to seem them again."

Harry sighed and hurried out of the room. He sprinted down the hallway and came to his aunt and uncle's room. He paused; he had never actually been in this room before, having no real reason to ever seek more contact with the Dursely's. He knocked on the door.

"Dudders, go back to bed. Mummy will bring you cookies and milk in a few minutes!" Aunt Petunia yelled. Harry rolled his eyes and knocked again, this time adding something.

"Um, Aunt Petunia? It's Harry. I just wanted to let you know that I'm leaving, um, for good. I won't be back, um, ever. Ok, so, bye then." He turned to walk back to his room, when the door opened. A distraught looking Aunt Petunia emerged. She took Harry into a tight embrace, but letting go and looking him in the eyes, his mother's eyes.

"Be safe and take care." She looked into his eyes a little harder, really taking them in. "You know, you really do have your mother's eyes."

A few minutes later, Harry walked back into his room, a little flustered and confused. He had never know Petunia to act that way toward him, and despite what his inner self was telling him, he was grateful for those few moments of closeness with his only remaining blood relative. Hermione and Ron looked at his curiously, but Harry just brushed it off with a shrug, and went to grasp Hermione's arm for the apparition.

"Oh by the way," Ron said before leaving. "Happy Birthday Harry."


	2. The Unexpected Dip

**Disclaimer: I do not, thought regrettably, own Harry Potter. **

**Chapter 2: The Unexpected Dip**

"Oh thank goodness you've arrived safely!" Cried a very relieved-looking Mrs. Weasley upon seeing them apparate into the Burrow's kitchen. "Aurther, come down, the kids are here!" Mr. Weasley came down the stairs slowly, dragging his feet all the way. He had clearly been woken up by Mrs. Weasley's yells.

"'Ello Harry, good to see you again." He shook Harry's hand, as his eye-lids drooped down over his eyes. "Oops!" He started, waking himself up again. "Alright Molly, they're clearly safe now so can I please go back to sleep. I have to get up early tomorrow for work."

Mrs. Weasley rolled her eyes at him before kissing him on the cheek. "Ok dear, goodnight then, I'll take care of this lot," she indicated to Harry, Ron and Hermione with a jerk of her head.

Shortly after Mr. Weasley departed to his bedroom and after a quick bowl of potato soup, the three made their way up the creaky stairs of the Burrow, being extra quite so as not to wake any of its sleeping members, especially the ghoul in the attic. Harry glanced at several of the doors they passed on their way up to Ron's room. Right before Ron's room, he noticed a door with pink flowers on it. He tensed, knowing who's room this must be for there was only one girl in the Weasley house besides Mrs. Weasley, and this was not Mrs. Weasley's room. _"This could get very awkward,"_ thought Harry, half nervous and half excited that he would be sleeping in such close proximity to the beautiful girl he dumped.

When he arrived in Ron's room, Harry set his trunk down at the foot of his bed and started to change. He instantly heard the obnoxiously loud sounds being emitted from the other bed. Unbelievable, Ron had just laid down, fully clothed, and managed to instantaneously fall asleep. Harry silently wished sleep would come to him so easily, but with the knowledge that a full night of terrible dreams awaited you, who would look forward to sleep?

Harry tossed and turned for what seemed like hours, when sleep finally claimed him. He was walking through a forest. No, not a forest, just bushes. A maze of bushes in fact. He was staring at the shining glory that was the Triwizard cup, Cedric by his side. He heard himself say, "We'll take it together," and with that they both reached for the cup, grasping it at the same time. A tug at his navel indicated he had portkeyed to the graveyard. Harry knows what will happen, he's lived this moment millions of times in his dreams before. But still, he plays along every time.

A sudden blinding pain in his forehead and he collapses to his knees. "Kill the spare," he hears the ugly voice of Wormtail say. Cedric falls to the ground beside him, dead. A fresh wave of grief rushes over Harry, but he knows the worst is still yet to come. Wormtail ties him to the headstone. He puts the hideous bundle of robes in the cauldron and takes blood from an enemy, blood from a servant, and bone from a father unwillingly given. _Wait,_ thought Harry, _bones from the father...bones from the father unwillingly taken...bones...Oh my God! Why haven't I thought of this before? Bones of the father, Voldemort hated his father, and killed him. He killed his father, a pretty important murder in Voldemort's life...Could this really be? __I think I've just found another–_

"Breakfast!"

Downstairs at breakfast

Harry entered the kitchen with a contemplative look on his face. Hermione and Ron were already seated at the table, sitting next to each other. Harry though something seemed strange between the two, and it was then he realized that they were not arguing. Quite the contrary, they were sitting quietly next to each other, looking very peaceful.

"Are you alright Harry?" Asked Hermione, noticing the odd expression on his face. Harry glanced at Mrs. Weasley, washing the dishes, and gave Hermione a look that clearly said, "Not now." While Harry had confided in Hermione and Ron about the horcruxes, the prophecy, and the mission to stop Voldemort, they were the only ones who knew anything, besides Dumbledore and Lupin. Dumbledore had decided to treat Lupin as a current guardian of Harry and therefore chose to divulge all the secrets Harry and Dumbledore had discussed all last year. Harry was grateful that he still had one marauder left to talk to. With that thought, Harry went over to the table and started digging in to his bacon, eggs, and toast.

Just at that moment, Ginny chose to come into the kitchen. She stopped suddenly at the bottom step when her eyes met Harry's. Harry choked on his half-eaten bacon at the sight of her. Ron clapped him on the back.

"Easy there, mate. We can't have the great Harry Potter meet his downfall in bacon and eggs. What would the wizard community think?" Ron snorted, along with giggles from Hermione and Mrs. Weasley. Harry rolled his eyes, and then they found Ginny again. She had a slight smile on her face, but when she noticed Harry looking at her, she turned away. Harry sighed.

Breakfast was an awkward occasion. Everyone was practically silent after Harry's choking fit, and the only conversation was Mrs. Weasley asking them if they needed anything at Diagon Alley, which they all replied that they didn't. Harry kept trying to catch Ginny's eyes, but every time he did, he'd look back down into his plate.

About ten minutes later, Ginny announced that she was going out by the lake to practice some flying. When she closed the door behind her, Harry let out a long held breath of relief. Everyone looked at him.

"What?" He asked, suddenly aware that he had attracted the stares of all in the kitchen. Hermione looked at him pointedly, as if to say "why are you still sitting here?"

Harry looked at them all, rolled his eyes. He obviously wasn't going to win this argument, and realizing it was the best choice, he followed Ginny outside, calling his broom from upstairs with a quick "Accio Firebolt."

When Harry left the burrow, he was blinded by the blazing sun shining overhead. He squinted, look around for signs of Ginny. He spotted a streak of red fly across his line of vision, and knew he had found her. Taking a deep breath, he made his way over to the lake.

As he got closer, he could better make out Ginny's appearance on the broom. She really was beautiful. She had grown a lot over the last few years, and Harry had been so ignorant that he hadn't even noticed her until earlier the previous year. He wondered how he could ever have looked past such a strong, vibrant person like her everyday for five years, not giving her a second thought.

Ginny seemed to finally notice Harry standing there, looking at her, because she stopped mid-flight on her broom and stared at him for a moment, apparently surprised to see him. It must have been only a brief shock, for in a split second, she was off again, zooming around the lake, pretending she hadn't seen him there.

Harry yelled to her, "Ginny! Hey, Ginny!" He sighed, and took a different approach. "Ginny! I know you can see me and hear me, so would you stop acting like a child and acknowledge me?" She kept flying, determined to ignore him. Well, Harry Potter was not one to give up that easily. He quickly mounted his Firebolt and shot up into the bright summer sky, loving the rush he always got when taking flight.

Ginny was zooming around the sky, apparently chasing something invisible. Harry realized she must be practicing with the snitch. _Man_, Harry thought, _Beautiful, smart, and good at quidditch. How did I ever let her go?_ He raced toward her, easily catching up to her speed with his Firebolt since she was only on a cleansweep twenty-two. He snuck up behind her and startled her, causing her to shriek and almost fall off her broom.

When she recovered, she looked up. Harry was about three feet to her left. She glared at him, and he gave her one of his famous weak-at-the-knee smiles that was always so charming. She tried not to let the grin escape from her lips. Just then she noticed Harry raiding his eyebrows at her, daring her to a challenge. With a brief nod and a determined look, she indicated that she was in.

Harry took off at top speed, darting every which way, looking for the small golden ball. Ginny did the same. After about three minutes, she spotted it. Barely a flicker of light ten feet away, she flew toward it at top speed. Harry must have noticed because he followed her, taking no time at all to catch up to her. He grazed her shoulder with his. She decided to play rough.

"Hey!" Harry shouted. Wow, she was playing rough. _Ok_, he thought, _if that's the way she wants it_. Harry pushed her back, making her fly a few feet to the right before coming back to meet him. The snitch was only a few feet away now, and they were quickly approaching the ground. He needed to take action now or never. He reached out his hand as far as he could, letting go completely of his broom. Ginny was right beside him, reaching too. Finally, he grasped the snitch and felt his moment of glory.

However, his moment of glory was cut short by the look on Ginny's face, fear. For a split second, he got a vision of the surface of the lake rushing toward him. He splashed head first into the cold water of the lake, Ginny at his heels. Taking a moment to recover, he quickly found his bearings and swum toward the surface. Taking a breath, he looked around for Ginny. She was nowhere in sight. Harry started to panic, calling her name the loudest he could yell.

"Worried about me?" Came the voice of Ginny from directly behind him. Harry whipped his head around to find Ginny swimming beside him, an amused expression on her face. "Thanks for the dip, although next time tell me we were going swimming, I would have worn my suit."

A brief mental flash of Ginny in a bikini came immediately to Harry's mind, pushing away his anger toward her for making him worry. He regrettable pushed the image to the back of his mind, directing his attention to the Ginny before him.

"That wasn't funny." He said to her, in the most serious voice he could find. Ginny looked ashamed.

"I know." She said, looking down at her nose. Feeling bad, Harry touched her gin and lifted her head back to meet his eyes. He was amazed at the fact that despite being in the cold water, Ginny was warm to the touch. Suddenly he wanted to hold her.

"Harry, I..." She started.

"No," interrupted Harry. "Listen Ginny, about last year," she blushed, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you. I made a spur-of-the-moment decision of what I thought was best for everyone."

Ginny looked up at him with a trace of anger in her eyes. "That's your problem, Harry Potter, you always have to play the hero and make the right decision for _everyone_, not even bothering what they think. You were just being a stupid, noble idiot as usual."

Harry grinned. "Well, can you forgive a stupid, noble idiot?" He asked, looking at her hopefully. Ginny just looked confused. She opened her mouth, about to voice her confusion when Harry placed his lips upon hers. She left her eyes open in shock for a moment, before closing them and surrendering to his kiss.

It was an innocent kiss, just a touch of the lips, but it held all the meaning in the world. Harry was kissing her, he clearly wanted her. This made Ginny the happiest person in the world. He broke the kiss, looking into her eyes with his penetrating gaze.

"Forgive me yet?" He asked playfully. Ginny couldn't help but grin. Following her instincts, she flung her arms around him and attacked his lips with hers. His and her combined weight was enough to push Harry underwater, Ginny on top of him. Harry came spluttering back to the surface, choking on water.

"Are you _trying_ to kill me?" But Ginny ignored him. She gave him a quick peck on the cheek, making him blush, then started swimming to the shore.

Harry reached the ground first, climbing out of the water. He pulled Ginny after him, barely needed to use any muscle. He loved how she was so light, so fragile, yet so fierce and strong at the same time. As soon as she was out, they met at the lips again, giving way to their emotions. _Maybe this summer won't be as bad as I thought_, thought Harry, grinning against Ginny's kiss.

**Thanks for the reviews! They give me incentive to write, which is always a good thing.**

**These first few chapters are a bit fluffy, but I need to set up the characters and plot for the coming events. So bare with me, and again, feedback is always appreciated. **

**Thanks for reading!**


	3. Retracing Steps

**Disclaimer: I do not, though regrettably, own Harry Potter. **

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**Chapter 3: Retracing Steps **

Harry and Ginny walked back toward the burrow, soaking wet and hand in hand. Harry looked at the girl beside him. Dripping from head to toe, she was still the most gorgeous girl he'd ever known. He wondered how he could be so lucky to even get to stand beside her. Ginny was a comforting force in his life. Despite all the troubles and horrors he'd experienced, the people he'd lost, the pain he'd suffered, whenever he looked at Ginny, every bad thing seemed to melt away, and all that mattered was the present moment, and the girl before him.

"What are you thinking about?" Ginny asked him, looking into his eyes.

"You." He replied, grabbing her by the waist and pulling her toward him. Having reached the burrow, Harry leaned back against the outside of the house, pulling Ginny with him. Having Ginny pressed against him was almost too much for his senses to bear. They kissed passionately for what seemed like hours, but in reality was only a few minutes. They broke apart, breathless, staring at each other deeply.

"Harry," Ginny breathed. Their foreheads were now touching, leaning on each other for support for both their lack of air.

"Yeah?" Harry replied huskily. He felt that whatever she asked he would more than willingly give it to her in a heartbeat. He wanted to give Ginny the world.

"I don't think we should tell anyone about us just yet." She let out quickly, looking into his emerald eyes for some sort of reaction. Harry was confused by this. Why wouldn't she want everyone to know? Was she ashamed of being with him?

"Why?" Harry asked quietly.

"Well, I don't want everyone making a big fuss over us. Everyone already has so much on their mind...what with Bill and Fleur's wedding coming up, and Dumbledo–" She stopped abruptly, looking into Harry's eyes again. She hadn't meant to say that, she didn't want to upset him. As she looked into his eyes, she saw a darkness pass over them, followed by an intense sadness that only Harry could feel.

"Oh Harry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean..." She started, but he interrupted.

"Don't worry about it Gin," he looked down, and inched slightly away from her. "I don't want to talk about it. Maybe you're right. Maybe we shouldn't tell anyone about us just yet, it doesn't seem like the right time." He looked sad, but continued anyway, regaining a little of the color in his cheeks. "Anyway, you just reminded me of something I need to discuss with Ron and Hermione."

Ginny tore her eyes away from him, looking hurt. He touched the bottom of her chin and gently raised her head up to meet his gaze. "I would love it if you were there too."

Ginny's expression turned from hurt to thrilled all in a matter of a second. She leapt into Harry's arms and Harry caught her. She hugged him tightly and then leaned back for a tender kiss. They stayed like that for another minute or so then broke apart again.

"I think we should head back inside now." Harry said, although he didn't seem like he meant it.

Ginny giggled. "Ok, but act like nothing happened between us. Pretend you didn't find me, and walk in a few minutes after I go in." She winked at him, and turned to walk inside.

About ten minutes later, Harry was in the living room, sitting with Ron and Hermione. He received a few questions about Ginny, and Hermione wondered how he could possibly have not seen her out there flying, seeing as it was a clear, bright day and there was no where else to look but up. Harry shrugged it off and moved on to more important subjects.

"I need to talk to you guys about something important," Hermione and Ron looked at each other questioningly, "about the horcruxes." Harry finished, and Hermione and Ron immediately moved closer to him and listened with rapt attention. "But first," Harry took a deep breath and looked at Ron seriously, "I would like for Ginny to join us."

Both Ron and Hermione were taken aback by this comment, and Ron spoke first. "Harry, you're joking. She's just a child, she doesn't need to be involved with all these heavy problems. Plus," Ron looked down, "well, she's my sister, Harry. I don't want her any closer to danger than she has to be..." he finished lamely.

Harry understood where Ron was coming from, but trudged on. "Ron, I know you care about Ginny a lot. I don't want her any closer to danger either, but she's a bright witch and I think we could use her help. Besides, she's just as involved as everyone else. Most of her family is in the order. Also, she's the only one besides me that has actually seen and talked with Voldemort. I think that might be of some importance..." Harry finished quietly, not wanting to bring up bad memories for Ron but needing to say it all the same. Harry looked at Ron, trying to decipher what was going through his head.

Just then, Hermione placed her hand on his, and whispered something inaudible into Ron's ear. He seemed to relax at Hermione's touch, and nodded to what Hermione was whispering to him. When she was finished, he looked back up at Harry.

"I reckon it might be a good idea that Ginny be here for this." He said to Harry. Harry looked at Hermione's hand on Ron's, then locked eyes with Ron, who went red. Harry gave him a questioning look but Ron shook it off and quickly changed subjects. "Ginny!" He shouted up the stairs. Ginny came running down, gave Harry a quick look that no one else seemed to notice, and sat next to her brother.

Harry took a deep breath, and started to explain everything about Dumbledore's private lessons and the horcruxes to Ginny. Ginny looked scared at the fact that Voldemort had several parts of his soul hidden around the world, but she stayed strong and didn't break Harry's train of thought until the part about the prophecy came up.

"I thought the prophecy was smashed back at the department of mysteries last year?" Ginny asked quickly, looking around at everyone in the room with a curious expression. Hermione and Ron quickly looked down at their shoes, not wanting to tell Ginny any more. Ginny noticed this and a worried expression came to her face. "Harry," she looked deep into his eyes with that look that made Harry want to tell her all his secrets, "Harry, what did the prophecy say?"

Harry took a deep breath and looked back into her eyes with equal intensity. "Well, Gin, it seems that Dumbledore had heard the prophecy a long time ago, before I was born, in fact. Where he heard it from isn't really important, but what it says is. It says..." Harry stopped and looked down. Ginny touched his chin and brought his face back up to hers, much like Harry had done to her only an hour before. "It says that, well, it's about me and Voldemort, and it says that...neither can live while the other survives..." Ginny face turned pale, and she put her hands to her mouth.

"But, that means..." Ginny spoke, her words muffled through her hands.

"It means that I will either have to be the one to kill Voldemort, or Voldemort will be the one to... kill me." He finished calmly. He saw that Ginny's eyes had welled up and a single tear slid down her cheek. She stayed silent for a few minutes and no one spoke, until Harry broke the silence.

"Gin, it's OK, really. Don't be upset. Besides, I've faced him loads of times before. He's not all he's hyped up to be...he's a big push-over, really." Harry smiled, in an attempt to cheer Ginny up. Ginny was not comforted by this.

"HARRY POTTER! DON'T YOU DARE JOKE ABOUT THINGS LIKE THAT!" She yelled, tears leaking down her face. "It's not..." she hiccoughed, "funny!" Harry stepped toward her quickly and buried her in a hug. He patted her head gently. Ron looked away, clearly uncomfortable.

"Shh, Gin, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to poke fun...It's OK...I'm sorry..." After a few minutes in his tight embrace, Ginny broke away and instead of sitting back down next to Ron, she sat next to Harry instead.

"I'm sorry for acting childish... I want to hear the rest. You had something you wanted to tell us Harry?" Harry smiled at her, and proceeded to tell Ron, Hermione, and Ginny about his dream from the previous night, and how he was back at Riddle's grave two years ago.

"So," Hermione started, "you think that Riddle's father's bones could be a horcrux?" Harry nodded, impressed as always at how quickly Hermione caught onto things. "That's a very clever guess, Harry, I'm impressed." Harry blushed at the compliment, and smiled.

"So, it's worth checking out then, right?" Harry asked.

"Definitely Harry, but there is one problem."

"What?" Ron asked, turning to her, clearly confused.

"Well, Harry's the only one that's actually _been _there. We don't know where it is, therefore we can't apparate there with him. Actually, I think Harry might have some trouble apparating there too, since it's been so long since he's been there. He probably doesn't remember it very well."

Harry nodded at this, though he didn't mean it. He didn't want to tell his friends that he still remembered every single detail from that night vividly, that on numerous nights the graveyard still haunted his dreams...

"So," Harry looked at Hermione, who had spoken again, "I think that the best thing to do would be to, well," Hermione looked timidly down at her feet, "go back in Harry's memory and get a good look at the place so we can apparate there ourselves." She said very quickly, and everyone looked at her. "Plus," she added at their stares, "I think it would be useful to see the exact process that brought V-Voldemort back to body form."

Harry was the one who spoke. "You want to go into my memories of...that night?" He asked, knowing the answer.

"Are you OK with that, Harry?" Ginny asked from beside him. He looked into her eyes, and he didn't want to let her down.

"I guess so." Said Harry, expelling a long-held breathe.

Hermione tried to hide the look of triumph behind her eyes, but didn't do a very good job. "Great, let's head up to Ron's room and get started."

"I'll go get Percy's old penseive down from the attic." Ginny said, then muttered under her breath, "Git."

"You wanna go right _now_?" Harry asked in somewhat of a shock, but the girls had already bounded up the stairs, eager to get started. Ron clapped him on the back.

"You OK mate?"

"Yeah...I'm fine." Replied Harry, and with that they all made their way up the stairs to Ron's bedroom.

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**A/N:This was kind of a short chapter, butI think I'm ready to write about the penseive now, so the next chapter should be up pretty soon. Thanks to those of you who reviewed, I appreciate it more than you know. To all those who are reading this story and havent reviewed, if you could please just tell me that you'r reading it so I know who my audience is, that would be great. I'm getting a lot of hits but I don't know if it's the same people or many people. I'm not asking for anything big, just a little review that tells me that you're reading. Thanks a lot!**


	4. Into the Pensieve

**Yes I finally updated. I am soooooooo very sorry for the long delay. I have been on vacation in Florida, stuck without a computer (torture!) for a week and a half. So, I decided to give you a treat and made this chapter very long. I've been working on it all weekend, and it is now 3 am. I am grateful for the reviews I received for my previous chapters. I'm so glad that people are reading and actually enjoying this story. (Hint hint: keep reviewing, I love them) I didn't geta chance to edit it as much as I would have liked, so just bare with me if you find mistakes. Anyway, I really hope you enjoy this chapter. I really like it. I hope it was worth the wait!**

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Chapter 4: Into the Penseive

Harry sat in Ron's bedroom, on the end of his bed. His feet were hanging off the sides, touching the wood flooring that made up Ron's floor. He recalled a time when his feet would hang off the bed and not reach the oak floor beneath. There were all so innocent then...Just normal children with cares about school and quidditch and friends. Well, Harry could never be considered 'normal.' He was a marked man from day one, a destined killer. How times have changed...Now thoughts of past loves, like quidditch and brooms and chocolate frog card collections, were deemed trivial and unimportant. Such thoughts were replaced with _how long do I have left to live,_ and _how many people have died today because of the war_, and _how am I going to save the wizarding world..._ Harry had lost his childhood long ago, and now, at 16, had the weight of the world on his shoulders. He wondered how he was ever going to get through it.

Lost in thought, Harry didn't notice the door open and close. He didn't notice the bed shift as someone sat down next to him. Only when a small hand gently touched his shoulder did he notice the beautiful red-head beside him. _Ginny_, Harry thought. _Ginny, and Ron, and Hermione...that's how I'm going to get through this. They'll always be there._ Or at least that's what he hoped. Ginny looked at him, eyes full of concern.

"Harry?" She asked, tilting her head slightly.

Harry looked back, emerald eyes gazing into her brown ones. "I'm fine, don't worry about it." Ginny didn't buy that for a second, but had to go and finish preparing the penseive. She looked over at her brother and Hermione across the room. Hermione was busy gathering notes and flipping through books, no doubt preparing for the journey through the penseive. Ron was sitting on the bed, seemingly looking something up in the book, when in reality watching Hermione busy herself with interest and something else. Was it longing? Ginny didn't know, and knew that now was not the time to ponder such things. Seeing that the two weren't paying attention, she turned back to Harry, and placed both her hands on each of his cheeks, turning his head toward her. She gave him a meaningful look, as if she were trying to transfer some comfort into him via eye contact, then gave him a gentle kiss on the lips, before breaking away from his and going back to the penseive.

She reached the penseive and started tapping the sides with her wand. She felt the eyes of someone on her, and looked up. Hermione was staring at her with a look of confusion and deep thought. _Oh dear, did she see me just now?_ Ginny wondered suddenly, involuntarily glancing over her shoulder at Harry. Her train of thought was interrupted by Ron.

"So, are we ready then?" He asked, looking around at everyone in the room.

"Yes, I should think so." Hermione answered, finally lifting her nose up from her papers. "Right, well, I think, Harry, we should start the memory from just before you were transported to the graveyard. Is that alright with you?"

"That seems fine," Harry replied, then suddenly remembering, "one problem though. I've never actually used a penseive, well for my own memories that is."

"No worries Harry, me and Ron have watched old Percy use this thing like crazy. Back in his days working as an assistant at the Ministry, he used to storm in the house everyday after work and complain that his head was too full of 'important ministry information.'" At this, Ron rolled his eyes. "Anyway, it's rather simple to use, actually. All you have to do is take your wand and place it at your temple. Then concentrate on the memory you want to take out. Once you have locked all your thoughts onto this one memory, simply pull your wand away, willing the memory to go with it and into the penseive. Easy as that."

Harry thought this seemed anything but easy, but took out his wand anyway. He placed its tip to his right temple. All eyes were on him, intently watching for the blue mist of a memory to come out of his head. This made it harder to concentrate, but he had to try. He grudgingly dug into his memory bank for the memory of that night back in fourth year. He found it, and focused all his concentration on that one thought. Feeling like he could concentrate no more, he slowly pulled his wand away from his head. It was a strange feeling. It felt as though someone tossed a bucket of water into his brain, washing the contents of his mind down a drain. He thought he finally understood how Myrtle felt, every time someone flushed her down her toilet.

He watched as blue mist floated from the tip of his wand. Ginny motioned for him to place his wand in the penseive, where a white mist was already swirling. He placed the wand's tip into the white mist and gave it a swirl. When he removed the wand, the memory was no longer attached. The four teenagers peered into the penseive, watching as an image of Harry running through the triwizard maze appeared.

"That's it." Harry explained to them, indicating it was time to enter into the penseive. They each nodded in reply, and took deep breaths. Ginny was the first to approach the penseive, touch the swirly mist, and enter into it. Ron followed his sister. Hermione then stepped up to it, but before he touched the mist, she gave Harry and serious look.

"You're sure this is OK with you, Harry?" She asked. At that moment, Harry felt a swell of affection for Hermione. He was grateful that she was so concerned about his feelings.

"I know it will help with the horcruxes, and while I can't say that I'm happy about it, I know it's necessary. So, ready when you are, Hermione." He finished, gesturing at her to touch the mist. She walked up to it, touched her finger to the surface, and was sucked into Harry's memory. Harry took yet another steadying breath, and walked up to the penseive. He was a Gryffindor. Gryffindors were never afraid.

* * *

Ginny touched the swirly white mist of the pensieve and was sucked in. After the feeling of wooziness lifted, she felt her feet plant firmly on the ground. She looked around, taking a moment for her eyes to adjust to the darkness of the setting she was in. After seeing the thirty-foot hedges surrounding her, she realized she must be in the maze. A second later, her brother plopped down right next to her. She was comforted by his presence. No matter how much she made fun of, pranked, or yelled at Ron, he was always her favorite brother. He understood her in ways her other brothers didn't. He always went out of his way to protect her, from boys to giant snake-monsters.

"Hey," she said to him as he looked around in interest. "Where're the others?"

"They were right behind me, should be along any minute." He took another look around. "Aren't we supposed to see Harry somewhere in—"

But just at that moment, the fourteen year old form of Harry came running around the corner, looking frazzled and out of breath. He stopped about 10 feet from where Ginny and Ron were standing. His wand was held out and at the ready. He kept whipping around in every direction, as if he were expecting something to pop out at him at any moment.

A second later, present-Harry and Hermione dropped down next to them. Harry gave Ginny an encouraging nod and smile, just to let her know again that he was OK with what they were doing. She still didn't believe him. She knew that this must be hard for him, despite whatever he said to her otherwise. The four of them greeted each other briefly, then turned their attention back to the scene in front of them. Past-Harry was still walking around cautiously with his wand drawn out.

"I think I must have started the memory a little earlier than I had tried to. I still haven't reached the Triwizard cup yet. And I think...yep, here comes Cedric now." Present-Harry spoke to them.

As he spoke, Ginny saw the handsome form of the former Cedric Diggory step out onto the path Harry was on about twenty feet in front of Harry. She looked past the boys and saw the Triwizard cup gleaming at them. As soon as she noticed the cup, Cedric and past-Harry must have noticed it too, for they both broke out into a run for it, Cedric in the lead. All of a sudden, Harry abruptly stopped. Had Ginny, Ron and Hermione actually been there, they would have slammed right into Harry. Instead, they simply went right through him. Present-Harry, knowing what was coming, stayed off to the side, smirking at his three friends.

"Why don't you warn us next time you know your past-self is going to stop all of a sudden. That was creepy. Hermione said, turning to glare at present-Harry. She glanced over at Ron and caught the look of horror on his face. "Ron, what's wrong?"

Ron, looking terrified, pointed behind Ginny and Hermione, looking about fifteen upwards. Dreading what she might see, Ginny slowly turned around and let out a scream. Towering over the hedges in front of her, Cedric, and past-Harry was a giant fifteen foot, black, hairy spider. No wonder Ron was freaking out. Present-Harry, seeing Ginny's terror, came up behind her and took her hand.

"It's OK," he whispered to her. "It's just the past." The warmth his hand brought to hers gave her comfort, and set her at ease, somewhat.

Past-Harry yelled to Cedric to watch out for the spider. Cedric stepped out of the way just in time to avoid a giant pincer coming at him. He tripped over a root sticking out of the ground and as he fell, dropped his wand. Past-Harry started throwing curses at the spider, but to no avail. The giant spider didn't even seem to notice the spells. It just kept advancing on the two boys. All of sudden, the spider changed directions and directed his attention at past-Harry. It swooped down upon the fourteen year old boy and scooped him up in its pincers. Ginny and Hermione both let out a horrified gasp and Ron whimpered as past-Harry was lifted twelve feet into the air by the spider. The girls let out another muffled cry as past-Harry's leg connected with one of the spider's sharp pincers and a deep gash appeared on his leg. Ginny squeezed Harry's hand tighter. Finally, Cedric and Harry managed to aim stunners at the spider's underbelly at the same time, knocking out the giant arachnid. This meant that past-Harry dropped twelve feet to the ground, landing on his leg, and breaking it. Everyone cringed as they heard something crack.

"Man, Harry. You never told us about battling a giant spider!" Ron breathed, finally able to speak now that the spider was unconscious.

"Well it wasn't much of a battle, was it? More like me and Cedric getting our butts kicked." Present-Harry said to them. Harry was always so modest, Ginny thought to herself.

Once Cedric and past-Harry left the spider behind, they made their way to the cup. As they both approached it, they stood transfixed in front of it, clearly debating something. Past-Harry was using the hedge for support in standing, now that his injured leg could no longer hold himself up. He told Cedric to take the cup, then Cedric told _him_ to take it. They both argued this for a minute or so, until they decided that they would both take the cup. Present-Harry let out a deep sigh.

"I should never have let him take that cup with me. He would still be alive today if I had just stopped him from touching it."

Ginny looked Harry in the eye. "Harry, you cannot blame yourself for what happened. It was Cedric's choice, and there is no way you could have realized the cup was a portkey."

At that moment, Cedric and past-Harry both touched the cup, and the scene changed from the maze to a path of grass just beyond a graveyard. The four of them stumbled at the abruptness of the change.

"This is it Harry?" Hermione asked tentatively. Harry nodded grimly.

"Wormtail should be here any minute." He announced.

Ginny watched as Harry and Cedric contemplated where they were, and whether or not it was part of the third task. Out of nowhere, past-Harry yelled out in pain and clutched his forehead, dropping to his knees. Past-Harry, obviously knowing the reason why his scar hurt and figuring out who must be there, desperately tried to tell Cedric to leave while he still could. Cedric refused. Just then, the sneaky form of Wormtail appeared in front of the two boys, clutching something in a bundle of robes. Before Ginny had time to prepare for what she knew was about to happen, Wormtail whipped his wand through the air, shouting "Avada Kedavra!"

Present-Harry watched the seen, grief taking him over. His breathing was shallow and his eyes were shut tight. In fact, Ginny wasn't even sure if he had watched any of it.

"Oh dear..." Hermione let out a sad whimper, and hugged Ron for comfort. Ron looked just as sad as she did, watching his schoolmate fall to the ground, never to get back up.

Wormtail approached past-Harry, who was now lying helpless on the ground in agony and grief. Wormtail grabbed past-Harry by his upper body and proceeded to drag him toward the graveyard in the distance.

"What a horrible, horrible man." Ginny muttered, as she watched past-Harry being dragged by the evil little rat.

"Harry?" Hermione addressed him from his side. "I assume the pain you're feeling is from your scar?"

"Yes," Harry replied. "Why?"

"Well, that would mean V-Voldemort is very near by, right?" Harry again nodded. "I don't see him anywhere, where is he?"

Harry answered her. "You see that bundle of robes Wormtail is carrying?" He pointed to the sack of dirty cloth Wormtail held in his hand.

"_That's_ You-Know-Who! Ron asked in amazement. Harry nodded affirmatively. "Bloody Hell!" Exclaimed Ron.

At this statement, Hermione started scribbling madly in her small notebook she brought. Ideas must have been flowing from her mind. Harry was curios to see what she was writing, but he was distracted by the fact that Wormtail had finally reached Riddle's gravestone.

Ginny, Hermione, and Ron watched as past-Harry was picked up by Wormtail and slammed against the gravestone marked RIDDLE. Wormtail conjured ropes and they flew around Harry and the tombstone, binding Harry to it in what looked like a very uncomfortable position. They watched as Wormtail then took out some spare cloth from his pocket and jammed it into Harry's mouth. Ginny buried her face into Harry's shoulder. She knew this was going to be awful to witness, but now that she was actually there and seeing it for real, watching as Harry was being tied up and hurt, she didn't know if she could handle it as well as she thought she could have. Just then she jumped as a huge snake slithered past tied-up-Harry's legs. Past-Harry's eyes widened at the sight of Voldemort's snake, Nagini.

Present-Harry saw that Ginny was disturbed by the scene taking place before her. He hugged her tight to him, just as Ron was doing to Hermione, who had stopped taking notes when Harry was slammed and bound up against the tombstone.

"So you and Dumbledore think that that snake's one of his horcruxes?" Hermione asked Harry.

"Yeah, but we don't know anything for sure yet. It's just speculation." He answered.

"Yeah, but Dumbledore's 'speculations' usually turn out to be right, don't they." Ron said. Harry silently agreed.

Harry turned his attention back to his memory. "This is the part you'll want to pay close attention to. Wormtail's about to start the process of bringing Voldemort back to body form." He informed his friends. They all looked wide-eyed toward Wormtail, anxious to see what happened next.

Ginny watched as the cauldron in front of past-Harry lit up as if on fire. Wormtail was busying himself around the cauldron, obviously preparing for something that was soon to come. At the next thing that happened, Hermione and Ginny screamed, and Ron looked like he as about to feint. Wormtail had taken apart the robes and revealed what was inside: the shriveled up, child-like, scaly, dark skinned form with eyes of red slits that was Voldemort. Wormtail dropped the baby-like form into the cauldron, where it landed with a dull thud. Wormtail then moved on to the rest of his tasks. He went over to the grave Harry was tied on and drew out his wand.

Hermione, Ron and Ginny watched with rapt attention as Wormtail uttered the first words of the ritual. "Bone of the father, unknowingly given, you will renew your son!" Past-Harry looked utterly horrified as the grave beneath him started to shake and crack, and eventually a swirl of particles rose out of it and into the cauldron. The cauldron turned blue. Present-Harry knew what was going to come next, and started to warn Ginny and the others, but they didn't listen in time. The result was that they all jumped about ten feet into the air and let out horrified gasps and shouts. They had just watched Wormtail cut his hand off, muttering "Flesh of the servant, willingly give, you will revive your master."

Ginny heard, rather than saw Wormtail put his severed hand into the cauldron, as her head was now buried into Harry's shoulder once again. Again, she reminded herself that she had to stay strong for Harry. However hard this was on her, it must be ten times harder for Harry. With that in mind, she ventured a look at the scene before her. She immediately regretted it. For the moment she chose to look was the moment Wormtail uttered the last of the ritual: "Blood of the enemy, forcibly taken, you will resurrect your foe." The rat-like man wobbled up to past-Harry, knife drawn. Past-Harry struggled against his ropes as best as he could, but it was obvious he could not move at all. Wormtail pierced his arm with the dagger and drew blood. Again, Ginny cringed and buried her head into Harry's arm.

A few moments later, more gasps made their way out of Hermione, Ginny and Ron as the fully grown, adult form of Lord Voldemort rose out of the cauldron. However shocked she must have been, Hermione took out her notepad again and started scribbling on it. Harry didn't know how much good those notes were going to do her, seeing that her hand was trembling the whole time. She would be lucky if she could even understand them.

The four of them watched as Voldemort called his death eaters to him, and one by one they all appeared. They watched as Voldemort created a new hand for Wormtial. They watched as the newly risen form of Voldemort approached the tied-up Harry at the tombstone. Voldemort explained to past-Harry that he was tied to his father's grave, and that the house on the hillside belonged to his father and grandparents. Death eaters started apparating all around the tombstone, and Voldemort then spoke to them about betrayal and loyalty. All the while, Hermione taking notes.

Voldemort then walked over to past-Harry again. He explained about the blood protection Harry's mother had given to him when he died. Ginny watched in a mingle of horror and hatred as Voldemort showed how he could now touch Harry, and he slid a long, pale finger across his cheek. Past-Harry cringed at the touch, but still was unable to move a muscle. Voldemort proceeded to explain how Harry had thwarted him in the past, and how he had devised a plan that would bring Harry here to him that night.

Harry didn't want his friends to witness any more of this memory. He didn't want them to see how weak he had been, and how he hadn't been able to properly fight Voldemort. Mostly, he didn't want them to see the pain that he had suffered that night. He didn't want pity. While he got that from the rest of the wizarding world, he didn't want or need it from his friends. Reluctantly, he returned focus back to the memory.

Voldemort finished explaining how he had lured Harry there. He then walked up to past-Harry, wand drawn, and shouted "Crucio!"

Tied-up Harry writhed and thrashed against the tombstone, barely able to move and clearly struggling against the ropes.

"No!" Ginny shouted at no one in particular. She was crying now, tears streaming down her face. She couldn't bare to see Harry suffer like this. He was so helpless, and she was so helpless, because there was nothing she could do to prevent this from happening. Past-Harry's head drooped down once the curse was lifted, and his body hung limply in the ropes that tied him.

Beside her, Harry stroked her back. "Ginny, please, it's alright. It's the past, it already happened..." Harry tried to soothe her, and when it looked like she was not comforted, he said to her, "Maybe we should leave. I don't want you to see anymore...It's just too...well...upsetting."

Ginny looked around. Hermione was in tears beside her, and Ron looked utterly blank and miserable. She wasn't about to leave now. She made is this far. Plus, she felt that if Harry finally showed them the rest of the memory, then maybe he would find some peace with it. Yes, she would stick it out...for Harry.

She shook her head at Harry's suggestion, and turned back to the memory. Voldemort gave Wormtail an order to untie Harry and give him back his wand. Wormtail approached Harry's limp form and started to undo the ropes. Past-Harry scrambled to find his feet to support his own weight before the ropes were untied. Wormtail then pulled the wad of material from Harry's mouth. Harry staggered to his feet with unease. Ginny figured his injured leg was still causing him much pain. She was afraid of what was to come next. The death eaters closed in around him and Voldemort, and they stood facing each other, wands drawn. Voldemort taunted Harry, asking him if he had ever been taught to duel.

"Come," Voldemort spoke, "Bow to death, Harry..." And with that, Voldemort placed the imperius curse upon Harry. Miserably, Ginny watched as Harry's back unnaturally bent to obey Voldemort's wishes. How she hated him

His friends grimly watched as again past-Harry was hit with the cruciatus curse. He writhed and screamed his heart out on the ground. Present-Harry was somewhat embarrassed at the way he was acting under the curse. Again, he didn't want his friends to see this, but he kept going anyway.

Ginny felt a swell of pride and admiration for Harry when he fought and refused Voldemort's imperius curse the second time around. This time, Harry didn't obey, and fought it. "Good on you, mate" Ron commented from Harry's left. Hermione silently nodded her agreement, tears still leaking down her cheeks as she stared at the battle taking place before them.

Past-Harry and Voldemort dueled some more, and finally the moment came when Harry was hidden behind the tombstone, while Voldemort was taunting him again, saying that he was a coward like his father. At this, past-Harry whipped out from behind the tombstone and shouted a spell at Voldemort.

He yelled "Expelliarmus!"

Ginny gasped as at the same time, Voldemort yelled "Avada Kedavra!"

This was the part present-Harry didn't think he could watch again. Even in his dreams it was unbearable. He gripped Ginny's hand tighter, no longer to comfort Ginny, but to seek out his own comfort from her.

Ginny felt Harry's grip tighten as the two beams from the spells connected in mid-air. She knew that something big was about to happen just from the look of apprehension on Harry's face. She couldn't imaging how it could possible get any worse than it already was. Ginny watched as the beam of light turned into a dome of webbed light around Harry and Voldemort. The connection between the two spells moved closer toward Harry's wand, and his arm began to shake violently. Then the connection started moving toward Voldemort, until it finally made contact with his wand. Fear was etched on his ugly face, and Ginny was glad.

The four watched as the ghostly form of Cedric Diggory rose from the wand. Hermione, Ron and Ginny all sucked in their breath. Hermione started writing furiously in her notebook again as another form came out of Voldemort's wand, and another, and another, until a tall man with untidy black hair came out. Ginny put her hand to her mouth and Hermione seemed to forget how to breath, as the form of James Potter appeared before them. Ginny looked to present-Harry, and saw a single tear slide down his face, which he hastily tried to wipe off and hide.

Next came the form of Lily Potter. They talked with their son about how to escape, and soon Harry broke the connection. While Voldemort was temporarily distracted by the ghostly forms of his victims, past-Harry ran toward the body of Cedric, dodging death eater curses left and right. When past-Harry reached Cedric's body, he shouted "Accio cup!" And the Triwizard cup came flying toward him.

They were transported back to Hogwarts, and a mass of people came rushing toward them. "The rest you've already seen for yourselves." Present-Harry said to them, and with that he pulled them out of the pensieve.

They landed as a unit in Ron's bedroom. They all stared at each other, mostly at Harry, and were too stunned to make a sound. Despite the grief and pain that he had just once again lived through, Harry couldn't help but feel somewhat relieved, knowing that he had finally shared this with his friends, and would no longer have to relive it again.

* * *

**So what did you think? I really got into the whole flashback and put a lot of detail into the events that took place. I've just always wondered what Harry's friends would think about some of the horrors Harry has experienced in his past. He's always so modest and closed-up about his battles with Voldemort and the hardships in his life. I don't think his friends really ever understood just how much he's been through. That's what I'm hoping to portray with this story. If anyone knows any stories about going through Harry's memories in the penseive, I would love to hear about them. I hope everyone enjoyed it. I'm open to suggestions from anyone about what should happen with the horcruxes or with Ginny and Harry's relationship. While I have a pretty good idea of what's going to happen soon, nothing is set in stone, so thoughts and ideas are always welcome. **

**And I realized that I have been spelling "Penseive" wrong the whole time, and it's really spelled "Pensieve." Oh well. **

**As always, I would really appreciate feedback. I never appreciated reviews until I started writing my own story. They really are the best part about writing. **


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